Christian activist and writer Yu Jie flees to the U.S.

by Paul Hong

He is the author of a book against Wen Jiabao, accused of being a hypocrite, "the beautiful face of the regime", which does not keep any promises. The awarding of the Nobel to Liu Xiaobo (friend of Yu Jie), has resulted in torture, controls and restrictions on the freedom of writing and religion. Yu is responsible for an underground Protestant community in Beijing.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - The Christian writer Yu Jie, a dissident, has fled to the U.S. with his wife and his three year old child. Yu fears for his safety and that of his family following his criticism of the leadership of the Communist Party and the threats received from the authorities.

Yu, 38, has written an important book entitled "China's Best Actor: Wen Jiabao," in which he criticized the prime minister, accusing him of hypocrisy, by promoting the image of a "kindly grandpa", while in reality pursuing his own interests to maintain power, avoiding all risks, while trying to escape any political conflict. The book was banned in China, but it was published with good sales in Hong Kong.

In an interview to Radio Free Asia, Yu said that life in his country had become almost impossible for him, especially after the Nobel Prize was awarded to the writer Liu Xiaobo, with whom Yu shared efforts and ideas. Yu is one of the co-authors of Charter 08, the document that asks the Communist Party in China to establish a true respect for human rights (including religious) and a multiparty political structure.

Yu said that on the eve of the Nobel Prize to Liu Xiaobo, the police seized and beat him until he fainted. Since then, "my situation has rapidly deteriorated." In addition to being subject to torture, "for most of the year - he says - I was deprived of my liberty and placed under surveillance."

Yu is also responsible for an underground Protestant Christian community in Beijing, deprived of freedom of worship. "I was denied - he added - even the freedom to publish abroad. I feel that as a writer and as a Christian, I did not have any freedom to express myself and to practice my faith. So I chose to come to the United States, where I can live with freedom. "

Yu arrived in the U.S. on January 12, host of a Christian community in Virginia. He has promised to continue writing and working for his friends who are "crushed" in China.